


Last Call

by OshHosh (HelfenundWehren)



Category: Quantico (TV)
Genre: F/M, It's sad and angsty, Or as best I can make sad and angsty, This would otherwise be a cute fic minus the death, children are involved, from a prompt on Tumblr
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2017-04-20
Updated: 2017-04-20
Packaged: 2018-10-21 03:59:27
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: Major Character Death
Chapters: 1
Words: 3,143
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/10677231
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/HelfenundWehren/pseuds/OshHosh
Summary: From a tumblr promt: Person B knowing they're undoubtedly about to die within the next few seconds, likely from the gaping wound they're bleeding out from. Instead of calling for help, they phone Person A and carry on a casual conversation as if nothing is wrong, making sure to mention how much they love them before their time runs out.More than a few seconds left to live for this fic but you get the idea





	Last Call

She was in the middle of cooking lunch when her phone vibrated on the island in the kitchen. A sigh escaped the woman’s lips and she turned down the heat on the stove as she turned to take the few steps needed to get to her phone. The name “Caleb” was printed across the screen and she slid her thumb across the phone to answer it.

“Caleb, what are you doing calling me? I thought you were at work. Are you hiding in a back office from the other players on the Hill?” She was smiling as she said this though. Caleb had never liked politicians, he still didn’t, but his job as a senior analyst in the FBI sometimes required some ass kissing and hand shaking. And that was something Caleb had always excelled in. Maybe that was why the FBI had let him back in after they’d taken down the ring of conspirators almost five years ago.

“Ah, you know me, I can only take so much manipulation before I need to hear your beautiful voice, Georgia Peach,” came his response, using that stupid nickname from when they were NATs.

“Caleb, grow up already and use my actual name.” But she loved it when he used those nicknames on her randomly. Usually it meant for a fun night that went well into the early hours of the morning. So today was probably a productive day for Caleb.

“What if I called you ‘Mrs. Haas’ instead? Will that mean I get a peach when I get home?” He laughed on his end of the phone and Shelby played with the ring on her finger. It had only been there for three years, but it had been an amazing three years, something people didn’t think they’d get. She knew people hadn’t thought they’d last long, Clay and the former President included. But they were still going strong.

“That’ll mean you get a kiss at least.” She laughed and shook her head. Turning back to the stove, she put him on speaker, going back to stirring the soup. “This wasn’t the best time to call, you know. I’m trying to make lunch.”

“I should have known. It’s a little late though.”

“Hey, Junior didn’t want lunch and decided to take a nap instead… After wrecking the living room with his crackers. And then pitching a fit because I told him ‘no’. I hope the ‘terrible twos’ go away soon.” And maybe that was why their relationship was so strong. They couldn’t fight when Caleb Junior was the light of their lives. 

He’d been a blessing when she’d become pregnant and they’d both settled down immediately. And Caleb really was the best father. He loved that child more than anything. His work-life balance still needed some work, but what could he do? The moment she’d gotten pregnant, they discussed work options and Shelby had decided to stay home. A nanny didn’t need to raise their child. And, when he went to school, she’d go back to working. It wasn’t like they didn’t have enough money between the two of them to live very comfortable lives while he was the breadwinner.

“It’s the Kool-aid I gave him this morning. You gotta let Junior enjoy the finer things in life. Like Kool-aid and popsicles and ice cream!”

“No, no I don’t. You have to stop being a bad influence or he’s going to grow up with an insatiable sweet tooth and we’ll never survive that.” Shelby laughed as she turned the stove off, setting the ladle aside. Caleb would be getting up soon. His naps were never more than two hours and they were getting close to that now.

“Hey, what do you want for dinner? I was thinking we could have chicken tonight. He seems to be wanting it. I can bring him to the store and we can make it just how you like it.”

“Shelby, that sounds perfect. God I love you. You know that? The perfect mom, the perfect woman, the best cook a guy could ask for. Even though that was touch and go for a few months there.” Caleb teased. Shelby hadn’t been the best cook when they’d gotten together and started sharing a place. But she’d gotten better, and had improved her cooking after becoming a mom. All that extra time after Caleb Junior got into a sleep pattern.

“I love you too. We’ll go after lunch. I was thinking green beans and potatoes to go with it. Maybe Junior will eat it all if we give him all of his favorite foods… With a side drink of Kool-aid. Look what you’ve started.” She heard him laugh on his end and make some sound.

“So, I’ll see you tonight around 18:00. Maybe a little earlier if I can get out of here early. Remember, don’t watch the news until I get home. I don’t need you to already know how the vote goes before I do.” And that had been their rule since she’d left the FBI. She watched morning talk shows but didn’t touch the news until after dinner. If something important happened, Alex or Caleb would call. And it helped to keep the stress level down at home. 

The first few months after Junior was born she’d watched the news all day and found it to be more depressing than it was worth. She couldn’t help to change anything being at home and all she wanted to do was strap Junior to her check and kick down some doors. Something the FBI frowned upon. But she got visits during the day from her old team more often than not during the weeks. Nimah and Raina visited the most with Nimah’s little girl. It kept her from being bored - Like she could be bored with a two year old running around.

“Okay, I’ll see you then. I love you.”

“I love you too. Give Junior a hug and some Kool-aid for me.”

“Oh my God. I am not giving him more Kool-aid!” She laughed. “Bye Caleb.”

“Bye Mrs. Haas.” And the phone line went dead. 

Smiling, Shelby set her phone to the side and looked over her shoulder as she heard the patter of little feet. Caleb Junior came into the kitchen, rubbing his bright blue eyes sleepily.

“Mommy, I hungry!” He whined at her.

“Well, good things I have your favorite: Chicken Noodle Soup. Lets get you into your big boy chair, okay?” And they both went over to the small table in the kitchen. Lifting him up, she put him in his booster seat, buckling him in so he couldn’t just squirm away. Going back to the stove, she spooned out the soup into two bowls, then got them both spoons.

Draining some of the broth so he wouldn’t make as much of a mess, she set the bowl in front of him, then filled a sippy cup with water. No more Kool-aid for the day. Caleb always gave him the drink but she wouldn’t stop getting it while shopping. It was sweet, the things he did for Junior, and in some ways it was probably to make up for his own childhood. It hadn’t been a bad one, but his parents had always been working, and he and Clay were always hot and cold.

Lunch was about as messy as usual and Shelby was beginning to wonder if she should just feed Junior without a shirt on. It would save on laundry and make cleanup faster. At least he never argued having a bath, especially when she promised they’d get him a cookie when going to the store. Sometimes, it was nice to just act like a normal person who hadn’t married into a highly charged political family. And grocery shopping was one of those times.

After a quick bath, Shelby grabbed her keys and phone and headed out to the SUV with their son. Strapping him into his seat, they were soon on their way, singing along to some children’s songs coming from the speakers. It was a perfect moment and she wished they could last forever. The only thing that could have made it better was if Caleb had been with them, doing his usual goofy voices at key points of the songs.

At the store, things went smoothly. There were no “I want”s and he seemed happy with his cookie. She got some chicken breasts and breading to go on it. There was no need to pick up anything else for dinner but that didn’t mean they couldn’t have some junk food in the house. Just for now. It was a nice day and so she picked up a cheese cake and some chips. Dessert and later dessert and maybe some ice cream. By the time they left, she had more junk food to eat than usual. 

It was at checkout that there were issues with Junior wanting everything blue he saw. Blue was currently his favorite color and he didn’t play with any toy that didn’t have blue on it. After telling him “no” a few times, and a lot of pouting on his part, they finally checked out and were heading home. Home to make dinner and be ready for a lazy night in front of the TV to hear about the vote on the defense spending budget. As she pulled onto their road, she saw Alex standing against her FBI SUV. Odd but maybe she was stopping by after getting off work early.

Parking, Shelby got out and waved at her friend. “Hey Alex! What are you doing here?”

“Oh, you know, I wanted to see you and the munchkin!” Alex replied with a bright smile, but it was tense, fake. They had known each other long enough for her to know when the woman was faking it. This set Shelby on edge and she almost checked her phone to see if Caleb had texted. Maybe something was up at headquarters…

“Uh-huh. How are you and Booth? Still going strong?” Another couple everyone thought was doomed to fail. But they’d made it to the two year mark. Maybe, just maybe, they had figured out how to make it work.

“Oh, you know, we’re good. Actually, we are pretty good. No fighting, no hiding things from each other, actually talking. It’s good. But, umm, can we talk? Inside?” Alex grabbed a few bags from the car to help Shelby, raising an eyebrow at all of the food.

“Sure, I’ll get Caleb set up with Blues Clues or something and we’ll be able to talk for a while.”

“Okay, sounds good. I’ll bring these to the kitchen and we can talk in there.”

They headed inside, going two separate directions so Shelby could get her son set up with the show for the next hour or so. Giving the top of his head a kiss, she made sure everything was all set up before heading to the kitchen.

“What did you want to talk about?” She asked, starting to put things away as they spoke.

“Yeah, have you talked to Caleb today?” An odd question but maybe he wasn’t answering Alex.

“Yeah! We just talked like two hours ago. He interrupted my lunch cooking and then we decided on dinner. It was strange but you know how he is.”

“I do know how he is. Um, Shelby, can you… Sit down?” And it was those words that had her stopping in her tracks as she went to put the ice cream in the freezer. 

Slowly, she put the ice cream on the shelf and closed the door, not turning to look at Alex. “Alex, don’t…” Suddenly, Shelby didn’t want to look at her long time friend. She didn’t want to look at Alex because her tone said everything.

“Shelby, please. Please sit down.”

At this, Shelby turned around sharply,, blue eyes narrowed but already there were tears. “No, Alex, I will not sit down because you don’t have to tell me anything that requires me sitting down. Why did you ask about Caleb?”

The question hung in the air for more seconds than it should have. Ever so slowly, Alex stepped forward under she could pull the now shaking woman into an embrace. That said it all and the tears spilled.

“Why? Why did you ask? Alex-“

“I’m sorry, Shelby. There was a shooting on the Hill as Caleb was leaving. There was nothing we could do. Nothing the medics could do. He’s dead, Shelby.” The words were out in the open now. Her husband, her true love, her soulmate was dead. The father of her son, the man that made the world go round, he was never coming home.

All she could do was bury her head into Alex’s neck as she cried. It helped to muffle the sound. How was she going to tell Junior that his daddy wasn’t going to come home? He was too young to understand. Oh God, how was he ever going to understand? He was so young, too young to learn about death and how no one was safe from that sorrow.

“I know you don’t want to hear this, but you’re going to have to-“

“I know,” she interrupted, pulling back and wiping under her eyes, “I need to claim his body. Alex, I can’t do this alone. I can’t- Oh God I just can’t!” It was a soft cry, her voice going soft as her face scrunched up to cry harder. And all Alex could do, all Shelby wanted her to do, was hold her.

At some point during her crying, Nimah came with Azar and went to be with the children. She would be eternally grateful for the woman coming and being with the children. It gave her the time to calm down enough to go fix her makeup. She wouldn’t tell Junior now, not when she didn’t know how to do it yet. Instead, she asked Nimah to stay with the kids until she got back with Alex. She had to go do this and she knew, if she waited until the next day, it would be that much harder.

The trip to where they needed to go was quiet. No talking, no radio, just blessed silence. Shelby wasn’t sure she could talk yet. No, she had to focus on keeping in her tears and keeping her composure. There was no doubt in her mind that this had made the news. Would there be camera crews? And what about Claire? Surely she knew. But she was in France right now. God, there was so much she was going to have to do.

Getting to the morgue was easy. There weren’t any camera crews and everyone just left them alone. No one there was going to get in the way of this. They were just directed with simple gestures. Before she was ready, they were where they had to be, and there he was looking like he was just asleep.

Moving like her feat were lead, Shelby went over to the table, the tears coming once again. “C-Caleb… Oh God you look like you’re just sleeping here. Please, please don’t be dead!” She cried, touching the cooled face of her husband. He looked just like he had that morning when he’d left for work. She’d seen many dead people so she should have known was to expect. But somehow, for some reason, she’d expected him to look different.

She didn’t know how long she was there. Time no longer mattered. She no longer cared about the time that passed. How could she count time when it was without her true love? But, while she was there, she signed paperwork and took the belongings she was allowed to take.

The ride home was just as quiet as the ride there. When Alex dropped her off, she offered to stay the night, but Shelby told her to go home and spend time with Ryan. “You never know when the last time you see them will be the real last time” she had said. Nimah, though, wouldn’t leave. The kids were already in bed so it meant Shelby would have been alone with her thoughts. In fact, the next few days were like that. People were constantly there. A specialist had been recommended for grief counseling for Junior who didn’t understand why his dad wasn’t coming home.

The next few months past in a blur. There was a funeral and special services. She went through some of Caleb’s things, donating what she could bring herself to part with. For a while, Shelby had debated selling the house and moving out to the country, but the thought always brought her to tears. She couldn’t leave this house they had gotten together.

But there was some light in all the darkness. Junior was one of them. He sometimes still cried but he was still such a happy boy. It helped to keep her own spirits up. And there were all of her friends too. She was never truly alone. And then there had been the surprise that brought her grieving back anew. It was how Shelby found herself five months after his death at his gravesite.

“Hey Caleb, I saw your brother the other day. He and Maxine are doing really well. They’re expecting their second baby soon. And you’re going to be a dad again. But you already knew that because I told you at your funeral. I’m naming her Kayleigh. Kayleigh Anne Haas. I bet she’ll look like you. I waited an extra month just to be sure. Junior is so excited to have a little sister. He doesn’t quite understand how it all works though.” She laughed, wiping the tears from her eyes. 

“Junior is getting so big. He looks more like you every day. And he even gets Kool-aid twice a day, just for you. Sometimes it makes me miss you that much more. But he says he knows you’re with us and keeping little Kayleigh safe. You’re our guardian angel now. That’s what I say. I’ll be back next week with Claire. She misses you so much. So does Clay. We all loved you, even when you didn’t want to be loved…” She bent down, kissing the top of the headstone. “Bye, Caleb. I’ll see you when its time. But it won’t be until I’m an old woman living on memories of my youth, I promise.”

Wiping the tears away again, Shelby made her way back to her car to go pick up Junior from Nimah’s house and tell her the good news about the new baby girl she was going to bring into the world. It would be hard, but she could do it, she was Shelby Haas after all. Nothing was going to keep her down for long. 

 


End file.
